The present invention generally relates to a safety management systems, and more specifically, but not exclusively, concerns a safety management system that is adapted to store a number of safety parameters that are used in modeling future safety incidence rates.
Safety is always an important concern for companies. Poor safety can directly impact the profitability of a company. Understanding the factors that contribute to safety, or the lack thereof, and the interrelation of those factors to one another requires complex synthesis and analysis of information from numerous sources. The task of compiling, synthesizing, and analyzing such information can be a daunting and time-consuming task. Results from this analysis process are often not available in a sufficiently expeditious or detailed manner to allow for the effective and prompt implementation of safety improvements. The inefficiency and expense involved in the process of compiling, synthesizing, and analyzing safety-related information is compounded by the need to homogenize data from numerous sources using differing media in order to utilize the data in a meaningful way. In addition, the means to record safety-related data often are not readily available in the workplace, and/or those means are outmoded and/or difficult to use. As a result, such data is not accurately recorded or is not recorded at all. Personnel often do not appreciate and/or understand the importance of the data being collected, and thus do not record the data or do so in a contentious fashion. Safety data collection systems also typically fail to address safety problems that exist outside work, but which may impact the work of personnel.
Safety prevention is another area of concern with safety programs. Personnel have to be trained and supplied current and accurate documentation in order to prevent accidents from occurring. Often such documentation supplied to personnel is not readily available and when available often the information contained therein is outdated. Proper training of personnel is one of many important factors in combating accidents. Typically, training records of personnel are maintained, if at all, by a human resources department, and these records are generally not incorporated into the overall safety management program. If management becomes aware of a problem, certain reoccurring accidents by personnel can be prevented by implementing proper training programs. By having this disconnect between training and safety programs, often many of these types of safety problems are left unsolved.
In addition, the economic impact of safety is generally not factored into the decision making and/or budgeting processes because there does not exist a safety system that can accurately predict future safety rates. Management often, if at all, base their decisions on historical safety rates. However, typically these historical rates are inaccurate due to improper record collection. Further, changes in organizational conditions can drastically affect the safety rates. For example, an increase in production rates for a specific product may drastically increase the number of accidents. This dramatic increase in accidents may greatly offset any profits gained from the increased production. Without being able to understand the factors that affect safety, companies are blind on how their decisions affect safety, which in turn prevents them from making educated planning/budgeting decisions. Inaccurate safety forecasting, for example, can also prevent companies from precisely budgeting cash reserves for their insurance carriers.
Therefore, there has been a long felt need for a safety management system that can improve safety related data collection and at the same time improve safety forecasting.